Never, NEVER think that things couldn't get any worse

My strategy is generally to attempt to think of the worst possible outcome and prepare for that.  This way I am never especially surprised or disappointed.  I'll go on the record again and point out that things can always get worse.  Recently, I've had to really dig down to find that "worst possible outcome."  Terrorist explosion, floods, and nuclear Armageddon might have to be added to my list.

Last night we were nearing 24 hours with the children.  The kids slept for 5 or 6 of those while I had a fitful night of, let's just call it, laying down.  We actually managed 2, yes TWO, sit down meals for the kids.  The kids really, Really ate well at supper (This will be important to remember later!) which included chicken fingers and mac & cheese.  My daughter, 9yo, asked for blue cheese dressing to dip her chicken in.  The 2yo and 3yo immediately chimed in that they wanted some as well (This will also be important to remember later!).

The baby, we realized thanks to the insight of a neighbor, was teething and having a terrible time.  She brought us some teething equipment and some medicine for her.  Fortunately, the constant crying subsided a bit.

With supper behind us, my wife decided that the kids needed a bath.  Now, I would have been perfectly fine not rocking the boat any and putting that chore off for later.  The kids weren't stinking or anything.  My wife, however, has a thing about baths and was adamant about this.  I couldn't really complain since she does 99% of the bath work anyway.

We have a garden tub off of the master bedroom which is pretty large.  We started with the 2yo and 3yo in the bath at the same time.  My daughter has left literally a toy box full of toys around the edges of the tub so there was plenty for them to do.  Noticing that there was still plenty of room, I suggested that we throw the 1yo in as well so we could knock out all the baths at one time. 

Mass confusion ensued.  At one point, I can't be quite sure, I thought I noticed the 2yo drinking the bath water(This will be important to note later!).  I alerted my daughter who was doing a good job watching them while my wife was busy getting the baby dried off and lubed up.  My daughter informed me that the cup was empty and she wasn't drinking.  In hindsight, I realize that it is more than possible that the cup wasn't full of water "that time."

Once the kids were out of baths, dried off, oiled up, dressed in pajamas and such, I stupidly thought that the "hard stuff" was behind us and we could settle down for the evening while the kids, freshly scrubbed, could drift off to sleep.

yep.

Just as I was about to sit down, chicken, mac and cheese, blue cheese, and dirty bath water were literally hurled out of the mouth of the 2yo onto our living room couch.  My daughter, never one to endure things she considers *gross*, disappeared into her room and was not seen again for 2 full hours.  I'll admit that I was more than a little jealous that she had that option open to her. 

About 15 minutes later, after cleaning up the 2yo, dressing her in new clothes, and cleaning the couch, the same thing happened again.  I suppose we were fortunate in that the volume of vomit was significantly less this time.

We decided to make a pallet on the floor in the bedroom where Tina was going to sleep with the baby.  This was so Tina could hear if there were any problems.  The 2yo went right to sleep, thank christ!

Next we tried to put the baby to sleep.  Tina rocked her and got her asleep in her arms.  We tried to lay her down but she woke up every time and started crying.  Fearing that this would wake up the sleeping 2yo, I left the room with the baby and paced and bounced for a while.  Eventually, appeared to go to sleep.  I managed to lay her down without waking her.

Just as I was pulling my hands back from the sleeping baby, I heard the 2yo stir.  What happened next I realize now was inevitable considering my luck.  There was a feint cry followed by the unmistakable sound of what my daughter calls "barking."  We have three cats so this sound is fairly common in our home.  Our cats bark all over the place.  After barking, the 2yo started crying.  Before I could get to her, the baby woke up and joined in.

Tina got the 2yo cleaned up and replaced the bedding.  I volunteered to rock the now screaming baby to sleep in the living room so Tina could go to bed.  This took a considerable amount of time.  Is there anything more grating to the nerves than a baby crying?  After a good hour of it in my lap, I can honestly answer "I don't think so."  The baby did eventually get to sleep and I did manage to get her in the bed without waking her.

Walking towards the bed I hoped to sleep in, my wife reported another barking incident.  We changed the bedding and cleaned up the 2yo.  She, by this time, had no trouble at all returning to sleep.  I estimated that we had enough supplies for one more bark before I would have to get creative and start raiding other beds for bedding.

Sure enough, that final bark happened about 5 minutes after I laid down.  Our laundry room is literally filled with vomit-stained comforters, blankets, and sheets.  Yes, things can definitely get worse.  It will be such a joy to wash and dry all that this evening where, for all I know, the same thing will happen again unless the Gods of Barking smile down and give me a break tonight.

What I'm secretely bracing myself for is the terrible certinty that it is a stomach bug that has now spread to the other 2 kids.